Are there any good & reliable INTERNET SIGNAL WIRELESS BOOSTERS on the market? I can only receive a very weak signal for my computer on the second floor. I have read reviews praising these devices to reviews stating that these boosters don't work at all. I would certainly appreciate any recommendations you can provide. Thanks in advance.posted by Mckoan1 to Computers & Internet (7 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite

Are you using the built-in antenna or a dongle with a unidirectional antenna? A directional antenna will help quite a bit. Failing that, there's the Cantenna.posted by djb at 2:03 PM on August 10, 2011

You imply that other parts of your household have adequate if not full signal reception. It sounds like you need a WiFi repeater or bridging two WiFi routers to extend coverage. There are many and many websites that discuss home networking challenges (especially this one) in a way that is useful to those who don't much about networking. e.g. Lifehacker on bridging routers, et al.posted by Fupped Duck at 2:07 PM on August 10, 2011

My mom moved into a new place with thick walls that mostly blocked her WiFi internet signal. We got her a BearExtender to plug into the back of her iMac which boosted the signal enough for it to be reliable/usable.

The only thing is that it's a little external black box; we kind of hung it off the back of the iMac so that it was still high enough for it's antennae to grab the signal, yet hidden from view. It's also available for PCs.posted by blueberry at 2:12 PM on August 10, 2011

I tried the beer can last night - worked perfectly, it went from dropping out all the time (this is on an ipod touch) to having an extra bar of signal and not dropping out at all.

BEER. Is there anything it can't SOLVE.posted by Sebmojo at 4:26 PM on August 10, 2011

The beer can antenna looks promising. But what does one do if the router in question has no external antenna? ie: if it's this one.posted by wabbittwax at 5:58 PM on August 10, 2011

The router wabbitt links to is exactly the same as the one I have, so if anyone has ideas for what to do when you have no external antenna I too would be interested.posted by Danila at 4:15 PM on August 24, 2011

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